Machines that include a weighted front-end attachment, such as a wheel loader including a loaded bucket, may bounce or lope as a result of the moment created by the load as the machine encounters rough terrain or other obstacles. Bounce typically occurs at one or more given speeds based upon the machine, the tires, and the attachments to the machine. In order to help reduce or eliminate this bounce, an accumulator may be selectively connected to the lift actuators coupled to the loaded attachment. With the accumulator connected to the loaded end of the lift actuators, pressure fluctuations in the actuators are absorbed, thus offsetting the moment created by the supported load. One such arrangement is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 5,733,095, which is likewise assigned to the assignee of this disclosure.
Motor graders typically include an elongated frame assembly with at least two sets of wheels that are widely spaced from one another and a blade assembly disposed between the sets of wheels. Variations in motor grader designs include, for example, machines having two closely disposed pairs of rear wheels from which a front pair of wheels is spaced, and machines that have articulated front and rear frame assemblies. Motor graders may additionally include a ripper coupled to the rear of the machine. Inasmuch as motor graders generally do not haul cantilevered loads, such bounce does not typically develop in the same manner as a wheel loader, for example. Such bounce can develop as a result of the elongated structure and widely spaced wheelbase of the motor grader and tire sidewall flexing. Accordingly, it is desirable to provide for a ride control arrangement that minimizes such bounce.